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☆ How pagers turned into explosive devices in Lebanon
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-20 | by ( Bruna Horvath | Bruna Horvath Is An Intern On Nbc News' Tech Team. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Pagers, devices that are used every day as a crucial form of communication for health care professionals, became a deadly weapon Tuesday as thousands of them simultaneously exploded in Lebanon, killing 37 people and injuring thousands. The explosions targeted the militant and political group Hezbollah, after the devices had reportedly begun beeping and heating up. Pagers are wireless communication devices that receive radio signals from short- or long-range paging networks. The pagers that exploded in Lebanon were made to appear as if they were Gold Apollo’s AR-924 pagers, but The New York Times reported that they were actually created by Israeli intelligence workers. Following the explosions on Tuesday, Hezbollah told Al Jazeera that the “treacherous and criminal enemy will certainly be punished for this aggressive act.”How did the pagers explode?

Persons: Al Jazeera, ” Israel, Mohamed Azakir, Amer Al Sabaileh, Matthew Pines, ” “, John Brennan, ” Brennan, Muhammad Mahdi, Firas Abiad, Mojtaba Amani Organizations: Hezbollah, New York Times, Consulting KFT, Consulting, NBC News, ”, American University of, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Strategic Advisory, CIA, National News Agency, Lebanese, Cross, American University of Beirut Medical Locations: Lebanon, Israel, Hungarian, Hungary, American University of Beirut, Syria

☆ Doctors overwhelmed by blast injuries as civilian impact of device explosions sparks outcry
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-19 | by ( Charlene Gubash | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Yuliya-Talmazan-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

BEIRUT — Hospitals in Lebanon are packed with people whose hands and eyes have been dealt serious injuries. The streets of Beirut appeared largely back to normal Thursday, but people NBC News spoke with expressed fear and concern. Relatives mourn 9-year-old Fatima Abdallah, who was killed after hundreds of pagers exploded in a deadly wave across Lebanon. He went on to call it an act of war against Lebanon, but did not specify how or when Hezbollah would retaliate. Although designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. and Israel, Hezbollah is also a political party in Lebanon, embedded in the country’s civilian structures.

Persons: Israel, Fatima Abdallah, Hassan Nasrallah, ”, Salah Zeineldine, Elias Jrade, Jrade, John Brennan, NBC’s, Lama Fakih, Marwan Naamani, ” Fakih, Fakih, Anwar, Volker Türk, Charlene Gubash, Yuliya Talmazan, Shira Pinson Organizations: Hezbollah, NBC, Getty, CIA, NBC News, American University of, American University of Beirut Medical Center, AFP, U.S, United, Human Rights, American University, Anwar Amro, United Nations Locations: BEIRUT, Lebanon, Beirut, AFP, American University of Beirut, WhatsApp, Israel, United Nations, East, North Africa, there’s, Beirut district, London, Tel Aviv

☆ Analysis: Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s speech shows signs of a group driven deeper underground
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-19 | by ( Tamara Qiblawi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The second sign was that Nasrallah’s address – his first since two waves of attacks detonated thousands of Hezbollah wireless devices earlier this week – was very possibly pre-recorded. The leader of the powerful militant group has not delivered a speech in person since the start of Lebanon’s last all-out war with Israel in 2006. In his speech last month, for example, Nasrallah referenced two sonic booms caused by Israeli jets that had broken the sound barrier over Beirut. The roar reverberated throughout the city yet the Beirut-based militant leader neither flinched nor referenced the incident during his speech. Israel’s fighter jets seemed intent to underscore the gains of Tuesday and Wednesday’s attacks on Hezbollah’s wireless devices: the group had been driven deeper underground.

Persons: –, Hassan Nasrallah, Nasrallah, ”, Mohamed Azakir, Reuters Nasrallah, “ We’ve, “, group’s Organizations: Beirut CNN, ”, American University of, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Reuters, of Locations: Beirut, Israel, Lebanon, American University of Beirut, Gaza

☆ Lebanon attacks: What we know about the pager and walkie-talkie explosions
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-19 | by ( Jessie Yeung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Lebanon is reeling after facing deadly back-to-back attacks targeting Hezbollah members – with pagers simultaneously exploding across the country on Tuesday, then walkie-talkies detonating in a similar fashion on Wednesday. At least 22 people, including children, have died so far from the two attacks, which Lebanese officials have blamed on Israel. Firefighters put out flames and a crowd gathers after a reported explosion in Saida, Lebanon, on September 18, 2024. How have Hezbollah, Israel and the world responded? It appears US officials were largely in the dark until reports emerged of the explosions, according to three sources familiar with the matter.

Persons: pagers, Mahmoud Zayat, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel, Mohamed Azakir, ICOM, “, Abdallah Bou Habib, Yoav Gallant, ” Gallant, ” Organizations: CNN, pagers, Firefighters, Getty, Hamas, American University of, American University of Beirut Medical Center, The New York Times, NBC News, Lebanon’s, United Nations Security Council, Israeli, UN, ”, Human Rights Watch Locations: Lebanon, Israel, Beirut, Iran, Saida, AFP, Gaza, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Israeli, American University of Beirut, Asia, Europe, Hungarian, Budapest, United States

Images of the destroyed pagers showed that they bore stickers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo, Reuters reported. In a statement, Gold Apollo identified the other company as the Hungary-based BAC. Reached by phone on Wednesday, a spokesperson for Gold Apollo declined to comment further, citing the ongoing investigation. The explosions on Tuesday come amid rising concern that tensions between Israel and Lebanon could spiral into all-out war. Hsu of Gold Apollo said he also felt he had been victimized and was considering filing a lawsuit.

Persons: Hsu Ching, kuang, ” Hsu, ”, “, Mohamed Azakir, Jeanine Hennis, Matthew Miller, Muhammad Mahdi, Ali Ammar, Hsu, Gold Apollo Organizations: Reuters, of Economic Affairs, NBC News, Hamas, . Security, American University of, American University of Beirut Medical Center, U.S . Locations: HONG KONG, Taiwan, Lebanon, Iran, Israel, Europe, New Taipei, Hungary, Beijing, United States, Gaza, Israeli, American University of Beirut, U.S

Most of the injuries were to the face, abdomen, hands, and eyes, he said, according to NNA. Footage from inside one of the hospitals showed chaotic scenes with staff attending to dozens of men bandaged and bleeding. Abiad visited several hospitals in the capital, Beirut, on Tuesday evening and then again on Wednesday morning, NNA reported. The American University of Beirut Medical Center said it had received more than 190 patients and was operating at full capacity. AUBMC added that its paging system had been upgraded in April 2024 and began operating on August 29, 2024.

Persons: Firass Abiad, Abiad, NNA, ” AUBMC, Pagers, AUBMC Organizations: Public, NNA, Healthy Ministry, American University of, American University of Beirut Medical Center Locations: Lebanon, Beirut, American University of Beirut

☆ Hezbollah hand-held radios detonate across Lebanon, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-18 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The hand-held radios were purchased by Hezbollah five months ago, around the same time that the pagers were bought, said a security source. The two sides have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the Gaza conflict erupted last October, fuelling fears of a wider Middle East conflict that could drag in the United States and Iran. But given the scale, the impact on families, on civilians, there will be pressure for a stronger response," said Mohanad Hage Ali of the Carnegie Middle East Center. One Hezbollah official said the detonation was the group's "biggest security breach" in its history. It followed a series of assassinations of Hezbollah and Hamas commanders and leaders blamed on Israel since the start of the Gaza war.

Persons: Tuesday's detonations, Firass Abiad, Tuesday's, Gold Apollo, Israel, Ayman Safadi, Mohanad Hage Ali Organizations: American University of, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Hezbollah, Reuters, Lebanese Health, Israel, Jordan's, Carnegie Middle East Center Locations: American University of Beirut, Lebanon, Israel, Lebanon's, Beirut's, Iran, Lebanese, Beirut, Hungary's, Budapest, Gaza, United States

The Iran-backed militant group said the wireless devices began to explode around 3:30 p.m. local time in a targeted Israeli attack on Hezbollah operatives. Experts say the explosions, unprecedented in their scale and nature, underscore Hezbollah’s vulnerability as its communication network was compromised to deadly effect. CNN could not geolocate the image, but has verified it was published Tuesday, the same day as the explosions. Hostilities are at an all-time high between Israel and Hezbollah following Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin spoke twice with his Israeli counterpart, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, according to two US defense officials.

Persons: Israel, ”, Hassan Nasrallah, “, Avi Melamed, ” Melamed, David Kennedy, I’ve, John Miller, Amos Yadlin, Nasrallah, Yahya, ” Yadlin, Kim Ghattas, Ahmad Kaddoura, Miller, Ismail Haniyeh, Mohamed Azakir, ’, Defense Lloyd Austin, Yoav Gallant Organizations: CNN, Hamas, Middle, GPS, New York Times, Times, US National Security Agency, Intelligence, Getty, American University of, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Reuters, Global, Defense, Israeli Locations: Lebanon, Iran, Gaza, East, Israel, Lebanese, Israeli, Sidon, Anadolu, United States, Iranian, Tehran, American University of Beirut

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